Thạc Sĩ Using bran as an effective weapon to compete in the market: A case study of nhat linh company

USING BRAND AS AN EFFECTIVE WEAPON TO COMPETE IN THE MARKET:
A CASE STUDY OF NHAT LINH COMPANY
​ by
Duong Manh Cuong

A research study submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Business Administration.



Examination Committee Dr. Truong Quang (Chairman)
Dr. Hans Stoessel
Dr. Clemens Bechter

Nationality Vietnamese

Previous Degree: Bachelor of Engineering
Hanoi University of Transport & Communications
Hanoi, Vietnam


Scholarship Donor The Government of Switzerland/Swiss Development Cooperation (SAV)




Asian Institute of Technology
School of Management
Bangkok, Thailand
April 2001

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I wish to express my profound gratitude and great appreciation to my advisor Dr. Truong Quang for his valuable guidance, advice and encouragement throughout the research study.
Special thanks are extended to the other members of the Examination Committee, Dr. Hans Stoessel and Dr. Clemens Bechter for taking interest and giving valuable suggestions to improve the content of this study.
Deep appreciation and thanks are also extended to Mr. Nguyen Van Dong Assistant Manager, Mr. Nguyen Van Bien, Deputy Manager, and Ms. Nguyen Thu Phuong of Nhat Linh Co. Ltd. for providing me the needed information and data to complete this research study.
Last but not least, I would like to thank the government of Switzerland for providing me a full scholarship to study at SAV in HCMC, Vietnam and at School of Management in Bangkok, Thailand.

ABSTRACT

In a market economy, the success or failure of the companies depends on how they fulfill consumers’ needs and wants. In a fierce competition environment, companies must compete with each other in terms of price, quality, services, technology, innovation, and brand name, etc. To differentiate their products from other competitors’, companies often create brand names for their products or their corporate. Therefore, branding has become an essential means for companies to survive and develop in the long term.
In case of wide product portfolio, “branding” even replaces “marketing” activities. Many companies recognize that branding is the most effective weapon to win consumers’ purchasing decision. Indeed, attracting consumers becomes a very difficult task for any company in a highly competitive market.
Although a company gets many benefits from its brand name, it is not easy to manage a strong brand. To understand more how a company builds and manages its brand to get the full benefit from it, a study into the case of the LiOA brand at Nhat Linh Co., Ltd., an auto voltage stabilizer (AVS) manufacturer, is undertaken.
The case study will focus on analyzing the external market environment, the company internal situation and its brand development and management basing on interviews with the Company managers and its employees. At the same time, a customer survey is carried out to evaluate what consumers know about LiOA’s brand name and products. From the analysis of the survey results, some recommendations for LiOA branding management and communication program will be made to help the Company manage its brand better and to strengthen its LiOA brand name in the AVS market.


TABLE OF CONTENTS

Chapter 1: INTRODUCTION 1
1.1 Rationale of the Research 1
1.2 Problem Statement 1
1.3 Objectives of the Research 1
1.4 Research Methodology 2
1.5 Scope and Limitations of the Research 3
1.6 Structure of the Research Report 3
Chapter 2: LITERATURE REVIEW 4
2.1 Introduction 4
2.2 What is a Brand? 4
2.3 The Importance of Brand Name 5
2.3.1 The main contribution of brands 5
2.3.2 A brand is more than a product 6
2.4 The Brand Equity 7
2.5 Brand Identity 7
2.5.1 Definition 7
2.5.2 The brand position trap 8
2.5.3 Four brand identity perspectives 8
2.5.4 The identity structure 9
2.6 Value Proposition 9
2.7 Strategic Brand Management 10
2.8 Brand position 12
2.9 Communication Program 13
2.10 Brand Leverage 13
2.11 Important Factors For Building Strong Brands 14
Chapter 3: ANALYSIS OF THE COMPANY CURRENT SITUATION 15
3.1 External Environment Analysis 15
3.1.1 Macro Environment 15
3.1.2 The Industry Environment 18
3.2 Internal Analysis 20
3.2.1 Company Overview 20
3.2.2 Company Performance 21
3.2.3 Strategic intent 23
3.2.4 Company Structure 24
3.2.5 Company resources and core competencies 24
3.3 SWOT Analysis 30
Chapter 4: COMPANY’S BRAND MANAGEMENT 31
4.1 LiOA’s Positioning 31
4.1.1 The AVSs Market 31
4.2 Brand Analysis 32
4.2.1 The origin of the name 32
4.2.2 LiOA symbol 32
4.2.3 Trade mark protection 33
4.2.3 Advertising activities 33
4.3 Brand Management 34
4.4 Brand Leverage And Extension 34
4.4 The Company’s Brand Intention 35
4.4 Conclusion 35
Chapter 5: FINDINGS OF THE CUSTOMER SURVEY 36
5.1 Overview of the Sample’s Characteristics 36
5.2 Consumers’ Brand Awareness and their Behavior 36
5.2.1 Brand awareness 36
5.2.2 Brand choice 37
5.2.3 Factors Affecting Consumers Choices of AVS Brand 38
5.3 Questions Relating To LiOA Products 39
5.3.1 LiOA name 39
5.3.2 Country of origin 40
5.3.3 LiOA knowledge information sources 40
5.3.4 LiOA usage 41
5.3.5 Consumers’ evaluation of LiOA AVS 41
5.3.6 Price of LiOA AVSs 42
5.3.7 LiOA shops convenience 42
5.3.8 LiOA advertisement contents 42
5.3.9 LiOA promotion program 43
5.4 Conclusion 43
Chapter 6: DEVELOPING A BRANDING STRATEGY FOR LIOA 45
6.1 Developing LiOA Brand Identity 45
6.1.1 The brand as a product 45
6.1.2 The Brand-as-organization 46
6.1.3 The Brand-as-person: Brand personality 46
6.1.4 Band as a symbol 46
6.2 Brand Value Proposition 46
6.2.1 Functional benefits 46
6.2.2 Emotional benefits 47
6.2.3 Self-expressive benefits 47
6.3 Brand Anatomy of LiOA 47
6.4 LiOA Brand Position 48
6.5 Branding activities in line with its intention strategies 48
6.5.1 Consolidate LiOA brand name in the North 48
6.5.2 Expand its market share and brand awareness in the South 50
6.5.3 LiOA expansion to other foreign markets 51
6.5.4 LiOA CABLE branding 51

Chapter 7: CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS 52
7.1 Conclusions 52
7.2 Recommendations 53
REFERENCES 55
APPENDIX A-1